Reports indicate that our continent is poised to approve Saudi Arabia’s acquisition of Electronic Arts, following its purchase of SNK.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has reportedly moved one step closer to acquiring Electronic Arts. Reuters reports that the European Union is expected to approve the acquisition. In September 2025, the trillion-dollar Public Investment Fund announced the deal in partnership with Jared Kushner’s company, Affinity Partners, and the private equity firm Silver Lake. The deal values a 93.4% stake in Electronic Arts at $55 billion. The publisher’s shareholders approved the acquisition in December 2025.
Saudi Arabia has invested in the gaming industry several times over the past decade. For example, in April 2022, the Saudi-based Electronic Gaming Development Company (EGDC) acquired a 96% stake in the Japanese developer SNK. In September 2025, Qiddiya, a Saudi-owned company, acquired RTS, a co-owner of the Evolution Championship Series, a popular event centered on competitive fighting games. EGDC acquired a 5% stake in Capcom in March 2026. However, this wave of investment may be slowing down as the PIF is reportedly running out of cash following its acquisition of Electronic Arts.
After oil, it’s only natural that the Arab country would want to invest its money elsewhere to have funds to draw on in the future. Of course, it remains to be seen what impact this will have on the extent to which games will be censored since we’re talking about a country that is essentially the center of the Islamic faith. As a result, it’s possible that, through soft censorship, companies in which Saudi Arabia has bought a stake will be forced to modify the content of their existing projects to some extent.
Of course, this may not ultimately happen, but it’s always better to prepare for the worst-case scenario. Given current developments in the gaming industry, that scenario could unfold more quickly than expected. Who knows? Perhaps the 1983 crash will repeat itself. Are we being overly pessimistic?
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